Newbie wants an FC but worried about the Cat 3208 engine

[ohiofancydancer]

I've been looking at early FC's on eBay, etc. What I hope to find is
a 'Bird with the Cat 3208NA and air suspension, which means 1981, late
1980 or early 1982. I am concerned about the frequency of these 'Birds
having a new engine installed at 75K to 150K miles. Some of the threads
that I've read say that the 3208 "should" be good for 300K or more
before an overhaul or replacement.

Might most, or all, of these low mileage replacements be due to poor
maintenance? I'd really appreciate the advice of someone who has had
some experience!

Thanks,

Dan Snyder - the Fancy Dancer

[Keith Strehle]

Hey Dan, what part of Ohio? (My home state) I'm not a professional
diesel technician but... I'm sure the Cat 3208 has been used in
trucking and heavy equipment applications for years. The difference
is that most heavy trucks and equipment 3208's have been maintained
professionally. No offense guys. So my advice is to also look at
other 3208 applications as well.

Keith
84FC35 (Cat 3208)


--- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, "ohiofancydancer"
wrote:
>
> I've been looking at early FC's on eBay, etc. What I hope to find
is
> a 'Bird with the Cat 3208NA and air suspension, which means 1981,
late
> 1980 or early 1982. I am concerned about the frequency of
these 'Birds
> having a new engine installed at 75K to 150K miles. Some of the
threads
> that I've read say that the 3208 "should" be good for 300K or more
> before an overhaul or replacement.
>
> Might most, or all, of these low mileage replacements be due to
poor
> maintenance? I'd really appreciate the advice of someone who has
had
> some experience!
>
> Thanks,
>
> Dan Snyder - the Fancy Dancer
>

[Jon]

--- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, "Keith Strehle"
wrote:
>
> Hey Dan, what part of Ohio? (My home state) I'm not a
professional
> diesel technician but... I'm sure the Cat 3208 has been used in
> trucking and heavy equipment applications for years. The
difference
> is that most heavy trucks and equipment 3208's have been maintained
> professionally. No offense guys. So my advice is to also look at
> other 3208 applications as well.
>
> Keith
> 84FC35 (Cat 3208)
>
>
> --- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, "ohiofancydancer"
> wrote:
> >
> > I've been looking at early FC's on eBay, etc. What I hope to find
> is
> > a 'Bird with the Cat 3208NA and air suspension, which means 1981,
> late
> > 1980 or early 1982. I am concerned about the frequency of
> these 'Birds
> > having a new engine installed at 75K to 150K miles. Some of the
> threads
> > that I've read say that the 3208 "should" be good for 300K or
more
> > before an overhaul or replacement.
> >
> > Might most, or all, of these low mileage replacements be due to
> poor
> > maintenance? I'd really appreciate the advice of someone who has
> had
> > some experience!
> >
> > Thanks,
> >
> > Dan Snyder - the Fancy Dancer

Well you said one thing about maintenance professionally done but I
beg to differ with you. I would think anyone with a 100,000 dollar
coach would for sure know what he had under the hood (Dog House) or
should. I myself kind of take pride in knowing what make my old
motor home tick and want to keep it up that way. Preventative
Maintenance is the key to keeping one of these 3208 up running and
running well. If you really get right down to it the old diesel
engine is a much simpler engine than a gas one. All bluebirds did
come with a factory manual and if the previous owners did not pay
attention to there procedures than they kind of deserve to have
machine balk at times and even blow up!
Fancy Dancer if you keep on looking on this board than you will kind
of figure out who is here for the ride and who is here for the
maintenance of there coaches. I kind of figure it out that if you
treat your old Wanderlodge with a little respect (No speeding or
running at top governor speeds than you will have a machine that
should last 300,000 miles). Change oil, check belts, check hoses and
check your master card for balance because of a unknown breakdowns.
Good luck on your search and if you look long enough you'll find a
jewel amongst the old stones. JipJon

Rebel Bird
At the beach:ttp://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y4/1942dodge/Rebel%
20Bird/?action=view¤t=bluebirdatthebeach-1.jpg
> >
>

[Jon]

--- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, "Jon" wrote:
>
> --- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, "Keith Strehle"
> wrote:
> >
> > Hey Dan, what part of Ohio? (My home state) I'm not a
> professional
> > diesel technician but... I'm sure the Cat 3208 has been used in
> > trucking and heavy equipment applications for years. The
> difference
> > is that most heavy trucks and equipment 3208's have been
maintained
> > professionally. No offense guys. So my advice is to also look
at
> > other 3208 applications as well.
> >
> > Keith
> > 84FC35 (Cat 3208)
> >
> >
> > --- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, "ohiofancydancer"
> > wrote:
> > >
> > > I've been looking at early FC's on eBay, etc. What I hope to
find
> > is
> > > a 'Bird with the Cat 3208NA and air suspension, which means
1981,
> > late
> > > 1980 or early 1982. I am concerned about the frequency of
> > these 'Birds
> > > having a new engine installed at 75K to 150K miles. Some of the
> > threads
> > > that I've read say that the 3208 "should" be good for 300K or
> more
> > > before an overhaul or replacement.
> > >
> > > Might most, or all, of these low mileage replacements be due to
> > poor
> > > maintenance? I'd really appreciate the advice of someone who
has
> > had
> > > some experience!
> > >
> > > Thanks,
> > >
> > > Dan Snyder - the Fancy Dancer
>
> Well you said one thing about maintenance professionally done but I
> beg to differ with you. I would think anyone with a 100,000 dollar
> coach would for sure know what he had under the hood (Dog House) or
> should. I myself kind of take pride in knowing what make my old
> motor home tick and want to keep it up that way. Preventative
> Maintenance is the key to keeping one of these 3208 up running and
> running well. If you really get right down to it the old diesel
> engine is a much simpler engine than a gas one. All bluebirds did
> come with a factory manual and if the previous owners did not pay
> attention to there procedures than they kind of deserve to have
> machine balk at times and even blow up!
> Fancy Dancer if you keep on looking on this board than you will
kind
> of figure out who is here for the ride and who is here for the
> maintenance of there coaches. I kind of figure it out that if you
> treat your old Wanderlodge with a little respect (No speeding or
> running at top governor speeds than you will have a machine that
> should last 300,000 miles). Change oil, check belts, check hoses
and
> check your master card for balance because of a unknown breakdowns.
> Good luck on your search and if you look long enough you'll find a
> jewel amongst the old stones. JipJon
>
> Rebel Bird
> At the beach:http://tinyurl.com/376ba4

[Scott Forman]

Dan,

I am going to echo the "poor maintenance" explination and also throw
in a comment about these coaches not being used regularly. When you
have a 25 year old vehicle with only 75,000 miles on it, it has spent
much MUCH more of its life sitting still, probably outside, than it
has "working". This leads to deteroiation, which is different from
wear, but will still kill the engine. If you have two identical
3208's, put one in a motorhome that is driven 8-10,000 miles a year
and put the other one in a commercial application where it is run
nearly every day and maintained to support that use, the commercial
application will last much longer.

When you are looking, find a coach that has been "loved". When
people have meticulous records, great maintenance habits, clean
presentation, common upgrades installed, etc, you can tell that they
loved the coach. When you go look at it and it's just sort
of "there", looking haggard, covered in dirt, and with scant few
papers to review from an owner that can't answer your questions, that
coach was owned, not loved. There are plenty of Birds out there that
people really loved, find one of those.

Scott Forman
86 PT38
Memphis
Used to have an 82 FC with 3208, though it was a fine engine



--- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, "ohiofancydancer"
wrote:
>
> I've been looking at early FC's on eBay, etc. What I hope to find
is
> a 'Bird with the Cat 3208NA and air suspension, which means 1981,
late
> 1980 or early 1982. I am concerned about the frequency of
these 'Birds
> having a new engine installed at 75K to 150K miles. Some of the
threads
> that I've read say that the 3208 "should" be good for 300K or more
> before an overhaul or replacement.
>
> Might most, or all, of these low mileage replacements be due to
poor
> maintenance? I'd really appreciate the advice of someone who has
had
> some experience!
>
> Thanks,
>
> Dan Snyder - the Fancy Dancer
>

[Jim Hutchings]

Let me echo that the 3208 is a good engine when properly driven and maintained.
Things that kill the engines are, not downshifting going uphill (lugging)
overheating (stupidity). Poor maintenance (lazy and cheap). In other words the
engine is fine it's just the nut that drives it that makes the difference.

Jim Hutchings
82 FC 3208 250 HP
Yorba Linda, CA

From: WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com [mailto:WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com]
On Behalf Of Scott Forman
Sent: Tuesday, October 30, 2007 4:19 PM
To: WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [WanderlodgeForum] Re: Newbie wants an FC but worried about the Cat
3208 engine


Dan,

I am going to echo the "poor maintenance" explination and also throw
in a comment about these coaches not being used regularly. When you
have a 25 year old vehicle with only 75,000 miles on it, it has spent
much MUCH more of its life sitting still, probably outside, than it
has "working". This leads to deteroiation, which is different from
wear, but will still kill the engine. If you have two identical
3208's, put one in a motorhome that is driven 8-10,000 miles a year
and put the other one in a commercial application where it is run
nearly every day and maintained to support that use, the commercial
application will last much longer.

When you are looking, find a coach that has been "loved". When
people have meticulous records, great maintenance habits, clean
presentation, common upgrades installed, etc, you can tell that they
loved the coach. When you go look at it and it's just sort
of "there", looking haggard, covered in dirt, and with scant few
papers to review from an owner that can't answer your questions, that
coach was owned, not loved. There are plenty of Birds out there that
people really loved, find one of those.

Scott Forman
86 PT38
Memphis
Used to have an 82 FC with 3208, though it was a fine engine

--- In
WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com,
"ohiofancydancer"
wrote:
>
> I've been looking at early FC's on eBay, etc. What I hope to find
is
> a 'Bird with the Cat 3208NA and air suspension, which means 1981,
late
> 1980 or early 1982. I am concerned about the frequency of
these 'Birds
> having a new engine installed at 75K to 150K miles. Some of the
threads
> that I've read say that the 3208 "should" be good for 300K or more
> before an overhaul or replacement.
>
> Might most, or all, of these low mileage replacements be due to
poor
> maintenance? I'd really appreciate the advice of someone who has
had
> some experience!
>
> Thanks,
>
> Dan Snyder - the Fancy Dancer
>



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[Mike Hohnstein]

You need to focus on '87 and up if a FC is what you want. The newer units are
much more serviceable and have the power to operate on today's highways. The
early FCs are weak in the power department and due to the engine cover of that
era, difficult to service. The result; service was usually put off, add
extensive down time and you have a recipe for a engine replacement sooner than
the odometer would suggest .
300 k miles on a 3208 is not an unreasonable number to talk about, but that
would be in terms of regular use. Sitting kills all things mechanical unless
they are prepped for storage. That is never done in RV use, owners don't take
the time to learn the details. I have shopped for used diesel RVs for years, 80
percent don't have adequate service, not even timely oil changes.
The truth is, diesels are more demanding of service than gasoline engines, and
much more prone to expensive problems. Sure comments are made about million
mile life spans, but ya still gotta change the oil and the anti-freeze. Most
owners are not willing to do the maintenance required due to the cost.
The FC can provide great value, but you can go very wrong with any used machine
if service documentation and maintenance history are incomplete.
Mike Hohnstein
Germantown, WI
83FC updated to newer specs.
----- Original Message -----
From: ohiofancydancer
To: WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Tuesday, October 30, 2007 2:37 PM
Subject: [WanderlodgeForum] Newbie wants an FC but worried about the Cat 3208
engine


I've been looking at early FC's on eBay, etc. What I hope to find is
a 'Bird with the Cat 3208NA and air suspension, which means 1981, late
1980 or early 1982. I am concerned about the frequency of these 'Birds
having a new engine installed at 75K to 150K miles. Some of the threads
that I've read say that the 3208 "should" be good for 300K or more
before an overhaul or replacement.

Might most, or all, of these low mileage replacements be due to poor
maintenance? I'd really appreciate the advice of someone who has had
some experience!

Thanks,

Dan Snyder - the Fancy Dancer





[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[brad barton]

Dan, I would agree with some of the other comments. Get a late 80's instead of
early to get the extra torque and hp. I had an 84FC w/ 250 hp and it was 22 mph
up the mountains with my foot glued to the floor downshifted. You also have to
watch the transmission temp climbing in hot weather. And make sure the electric
radiator fan works on override. You'll need it for slow climbs where you're not
getting much air into the engine. Once on the flat, they'll run 65 mph all day
and the FC doghouse is not that noisy. But get the extra power if you can.Brad
Barton 00LXiDFWbbartonwx@...


To: WanderlodgeForum@...: fancy_dancer@...:
Tue, 30 Oct 2007 19:37:18 +0000Subject: [WanderlodgeForum] Newbie wants an FC
but worried about the Cat 3208 engine




I've been looking at early FC's on eBay, etc. What I hope to find is a 'Bird
with the Cat 3208NA and air suspension, which means 1981, late 1980 or early
1982. I am concerned about the frequency of these 'Birds having a new engine
installed at 75K to 150K miles. Some of the threads that I've read say that the
3208 "should" be good for 300K or more before an overhaul or replacement.Might
most, or all, of these low mileage replacements be due to poor maintenance? I'd
really appreciate the advice of someone who has had some experience!Thanks,Dan
Snyder - the Fancy Dancer






_________________________________________________________________
Climb to the top of the charts! Play Star Shuffle: the word scramble challenge
with star power.
http://club.live.com/star_shuffle.aspx?i...xtlink_oct

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[Jon]

--- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, "Jon" wrote:
>
> --- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, "Jon" wrote:
> >
> > --- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, "Keith Strehle"
> > wrote:
> > >
> > > Hey Dan, what part of Ohio? (My home state) I'm not a
> > professional
> > > diesel technician but... I'm sure the Cat 3208 has been used
in
> > > trucking and heavy equipment applications for years. The
> > difference
> > > is that most heavy trucks and equipment 3208's have been
> maintained
> > > professionally. No offense guys. So my advice is to also look
> at
> > > other 3208 applications as well.
> > >
> > > Keith
> > > 84FC35 (Cat 3208)
> > >
> > >
> > > --- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, "ohiofancydancer"
> > > wrote:
> > > >
> > > > I've been looking at early FC's on eBay, etc. What I hope to
> find
> > > is
> > > > a 'Bird with the Cat 3208NA and air suspension, which means
> 1981,
> > > late
> > > > 1980 or early 1982. I am concerned about the frequency of
> > > these 'Birds
> > > > having a new engine installed at 75K to 150K miles. Some of
the
> > > threads
> > > > that I've read say that the 3208 "should" be good for 300K or
> > more
> > > > before an overhaul or replacement.
> > > >
> > > > Might most, or all, of these low mileage replacements be due
to
> > > poor
> > > > maintenance? I'd really appreciate the advice of someone who
> has
> > > had
> > > > some experience!
> > > >
> > > > Thanks,
> > > >
> > > > Dan Snyder - the Fancy Dancer
> >
> > Well you said one thing about maintenance professionally done but
I
> > beg to differ with you. I would think anyone with a 100,000
dollar
> > coach would for sure know what he had under the hood (Dog House)
or
> > should. I myself kind of take pride in knowing what make my old
> > motor home tick and want to keep it up that way. Preventative
> > Maintenance is the key to keeping one of these 3208 up running
and
> > running well. If you really get right down to it the old diesel
> > engine is a much simpler engine than a gas one. All bluebirds
did
> > come with a factory manual and if the previous owners did not pay
> > attention to there procedures than they kind of deserve to have
> > machine balk at times and even blow up!
> > Fancy Dancer if you keep on looking on this board than you will
> kind
> > of figure out who is here for the ride and who is here for the
> > maintenance of there coaches. I kind of figure it out that if
you
> > treat your old Wanderlodge with a little respect (No speeding or
> > running at top governor speeds than you will have a machine that
> > should last 300,000 miles). Change oil, check belts, check hoses
> and
> > check your master card for balance because of a unknown
breakdowns.
> > Good luck on your search and if you look long enough you'll find
a
> > jewel amongst the old stones. JipJon
> >
> > Rebel Bird
> > At the beach:http://tinyurl.com/376ba4
http://tinyurl.com/2g7gwx

>

[david edwards]

I can provide some insight on this question since my
coach had a 3208 replaced at about 75k. It was
replaced because it put a rod thru the block on the
left side. I have no idea why it happened. Perhaps
it was run out of oil or badly overheated. Bluebox
seems to indicate that the owner was not negligent in
general maintenance. It seems unlikely to me that
catastrophic failure like that would not give any
advance warning signs unless it was instigated by
suddenly dropping a valve into the cylinder or
something liek that but there was no comment in the
paperwork on any other related problems.

Kerry
82 Fc 35
Denver

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